In this corner...

In one corner, fighting from Franklin Lakes, you have Willie Randolph, you said he was "surprised" by the firing. In another corner, fighting out of Flushing, you have Omar Minaya, who said he gave Randolph a "heads up" all along.

It's not my job to say whether I believe one or the other. It's just my job to present the facts, and let you decide.

I've known that by talking with people close to the ex-manager that he was "very worried" about the shaky ground his job status was on. I know by talking with people who know about how the firing went down that Randolph and his coaching staff "didn't know" that they were going in to get fired. The Mets did it in turnstile-fashion - one by one.

I know Omar Minaya struggled with this decision. Why? Because there was pressure put from above and to the sides from enemies of Randolph. In the end, Minaya had no choice.
But now this is over with. The players, for one, exhaled deeply last night. Brian Schneider said - no offense to my profession - that matters will get much better in the clubhouse once the press stops asking them about this.